Parabolic bass bar

May 4, 2007 at 3:56 AM

I have been to a site on the Net that sells a $1,500 bass bar retrofit for violins, patented.

I have rolled that around in my head for a day and at practice, teach asked me when I was going to get started on my first violin. I have the spruce and flamed maple wood sitting on an end table in the living room airing out and getting acclimated to Idaho. It weighs 4 pounds and 15 1/2 oz's. It is four year old dried Canadian wood. I am going to weigh it again in a couple of months and see how much water it has lost and that will tell me if it is ready and stable for construction to begin.

Well, I use to grind parabolic mirrors for a reflecting telescope and thought, why not do parabolic sides to the base bar with parabolic wooden reflectors under the two f holes. There are so many things that will be tried in the future as we run out of trees and certain woods. I saw an Idaho fiddle made out of Poplar wood today at the Arizona Violin Makers site under pictures.

I have a pottery nut neighbor who sold me a vase with a rich medium brown in it. The brown came from adding Ash ashes (slurry)to the surface before firing. She was just goofing around when she discovered the process last fall.

From Jim W. Miller
Posted on May 4, 2007 at 8:52 AM

If I had a violin with parabolic wooden reflectors inside I'd be tempted to take them out. Then I'd glue them back to back and make a yo-yo.

From Robert Berentz
Posted on May 4, 2007 at 3:00 PM

Peter Zaret sells bass bars that are much wider at the base. I have not paid the price to see one. This would give a Parabolic surface and his bass bar sells for $1,500 and they are currently being played all over the world and have received favorable comments from Isaac Stern and many others.

Those who have used the new bar say it gives an instrument a sound with natural beauty, balance across the strings and one does not have to struggle to make the strings respond.

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Parabolic bass bar

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